San Francisco Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

San Francisco Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Randy Miller III February 8, 2021

W. S. Van Dyke's "musical-drama disaster" San Francisco is a wildly entertaining but ridiculously overcooked mess of a film, the kind that must be seen to be believed. Among other things, it's the Titanic of its day: a fictional romance hastily slapped onto historical tragedy, smoothed over by impressive special effects and two attractive leads. This time around it's Clark Gable and Jeanette MacDonald as Blackie Norton and Mary Blake; he's a cynical rogue (natch) and she's a very talented singer -- the perfect fit for his nightclub in San Francisco's Barbary Coast. She knocks 'em dead and he's head over heels too, but complications arise: Blackie's running for the city's Board of Supervisors, his friend Father Tim Mullen (Spencer Tracy) tries to rein him in, and Mary's talent attracts lucrative gigs elsewhere.

It sounds fine so far, but San Francisco eventually takes two wild left turns: one is, of course, the arrival of the 1906 earthquake that levels the city in a matter of seconds, and the other is a baffling detour into religious hogwash that almost sinks the entire ship. Blackie's an atheist, see, and not exactly a moral one either: he's selfish and arrogant, unafraid to make moves on married women, deck anyone who crosses him, or even use Mary as a pawn to benefit his business interests. Father Mullen, on the other hand, valiantly attempts to bring Blackie to the light... but it's not until the horrific earthquake and its immediate aftermath that ol' Blackie finally repents for his wicked ways. He's an atheist trapped in a rather deep foxhole, but God's ultimate wrath has finally shaken him loose. Yawn.

Bear in mind that both of these left turns happen at almost the last possible moment: San Francisco clocks in at nearly 120 minutes, and 90 have ticked away before any rumbling starts. That's a lot to ask of any audience, especially those who expected more quakes than quavers. While the eventual change in direction still packs a wallop (and would make San Francisco great fun to watch with a "blind" third party), that subsequent Sunday sermon final act leaves a bitter aftertaste -- I'll admit that I was so repulsed by the final 15 minutes that I actually paused for a break to finish later. But aside from that, it's so entertaining that I ended up enjoying myself: there's a real "throw everything at the wall and see what sticks" mentality on display and, though I still consider San Francisco pretty awful from a storytelling perspective, I can't help but respect that kind of gonzo risk-taking. (And the actual earthquake scene itself, aside from a handful of dodgy special effects, is still extremely impressive more than eight decades later.)

So yeah, come for peak Clark Gable and the flexible voice of Jeanette MacDonald, and turn off all reason and logic in the home stretch. You'll have a good time and you certainly won't be bored -- even if you don't like the opera scenes, just take a few minutes to re-check your running tally of all the clean one-punch knockouts before that.

Warner Archive's Blu-ray is, of course, up to their usual high standards of quality, combining another top-tier A/V presentation (including an outstanding lossless audio mix) with a great mix of DVD-era bonus features that fans will enjoy digging through. It's a surprisingly well-rounded package in which every element meets or exceeds the movie itself... so if you view San Francisco as a five-star classic, this might just be "release of the year" material.

San Francisco Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Advertised as "a brand-new master struck from preservation elements" (indicating a variety of sources), this restored 1080p transfer of San Francisco is more great work from perhaps the best boutique label in the business, pound for pound. The mixture of genres lends itself to a variety of locales and moods: from the bright lights of the Barbary Coast and Mary's glitzy performance at the Tivoli Opera House to sunlit street scenes, the devastating earthquake, and its smoky aftermath, almost no visual stone is left unturned and the Blu-ray handles everything nicely. No egregious digital noise reduction has been applied, which allows for a pleasing layer of natural film grain and plenty of fine detail, as well as respectable amounts of depth in the right lighting conditions. Dirt and debris are basically absent, and the show runs at a very high bit rate from start to finish. Although a handful of the film's more limited special effects reveal obvious seams such as harsh outlines, background softness, and wavering contrast levels, I appreciate that Warner Archive, as always, has respectfully left these source blemishes intact rather than giving them a modern coat of paint. All catalog titles should get this kind of purist-friendly treatment, but it's especially appreciated in this case.

As usual, Warner Archive has uploaded a few short YouTube clips showing off their new restoration, including the full three and a half-minute opening sequence and a big ol' fat cliffhanger when the earthquake finally hits.

San Francisco Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

While it's baffling that San Francisco was nominated for the Best Picture Oscar that year, its win for Best Sound Mixing was well-earned. Warner Archive's restored DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mix provides solid support: the dialogue is clean and crisp, background noise blends in nicely, and the lively music -- whether it be the original score or one of Jeanette MacDonald's many solos -- has a very full and dynamic presence than commands attention. But the film's inarguable audio highlight is its third-act earthquake scene, which roars to life and features perhaps the most impressive low end activity I've heard in a mono track from any era and really heightens all the chaos during those turbulent few minutes. Of course it doesn't last long and most of San Francisco is much more dialed back in comparison, but it puts a pretty strong exclamation point on a track with basically zero fundamental drawbacks. Honestly, aside from a few dodgy moments of ADR, it's as perfect an experience as you're likely to have with a film from that decade.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are included during the main feature only. Though Warner Archive has come a long way from their ALL CAPS days, I've got to get on my soapbox about their one remaining problem: they should really start porting over existing the subtitle tracks for the included DVD-era bonus features.

San Francisco Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release ships in a standard keepcase with poster-themed cover artwork and no inserts. The DVD-era extras, while not very film-specific, are good fun to dig through and add a decent amount of value.

• Clark Gable: Tall, Dark and Handsome (46:30) - A charmingly dated 1996 documentary, hosted by Liam Neeson and originally airing on TNT, that serves as a cursory overview of the actor's life and career. It features plenty of film clips starring the prolific and charismatic Gable, from early appearances in a few 1920s silent films to his breakthrough the following decade in classics like Red Dust, It Happened One Night, Mutiny on the Bounty, and Gone With the Wind. Material about his personal life is often a bit more vague, including several interviews with his children... some of whom were adults before they finally met dear ol' Dad. Ouch.

• Classic Cartoon - "Bottles" (10:16) - This 1936 MGM Happy Harmonies short, featuring a druggist who gets shrunk by his own potion on a stormy night, has solid visual gags and a potent fever-dream atmosphere.

• Cavalcade of San Francisco (8:55) - A 1940 "FitzPatrick Traveltalks" short, this charming Technicolor piece offers a quick tour of then-modern San Francisco and its many impressive landmarks.

• Night Descends on Treasure Island (8:05) - Another "FitzPatrick Traveltalks" short from the same year that documents the 1939 Golden Gate Exposition, AKA "The World's Fair of the West".

• Alternate Ending Sequence (0:37) - Blackie snubs the gospel and continues his life of debauchery? Nope, just a silent dissolve between the earthquake wreckage and a rebuilt San Francisco skyline. Bummer!

• Theatrical Reissue Trailer (2:11) - This vintage promotional piece can also be seen here.

San Francisco Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Any movie that shifts from romantic drama to musical to full-on disaster flick is at least worth a run-through... and while W. S. Van Dyke's San Francisco suffers from an insulting religious coda, the sheer entertainment value of what comes before is commendable on its own terms. If nothing else, the trio of performances by Clark Gable, Jeanette MacDonald, and Spencer Tracy should be enough to pique your interest. Warner Archive's Blu-ray is a keeper, though, as its outstanding A/V presentation and collection of DVD-era bonus features earn respectably high marks... better than the film itself, even. Recommended to interested newcomers, and even more so to established fans.